WMF Journal

December 21, 2011

Operation Signage: Angkor Archaeological Park, Day 3

Posted by Ken Feisel, Art Director

Angkor Archaeological Park, Cambodia

I knew it! The cocktail cure for jetlag worked like a charm, and I’m back on schedule. I spent all day in the office today, which is a bit dispiriting when you know that one of the great archaeological wonders of the world is a few minutes away.

An irritated aside: until I started traveling in southeast Asia, I thought Americans were some of the rudest tourists on earth. I now know we rank at least #4. Come here some time and you’ll know who I’m talking about. Really? Speaker-Skyping in a hotel lobby? In lederhosen?

Anyway, back to today’s events. I was out bright and early this morning, so had a chance to swing by a park a few blocks away where the trees are home to a colony of bats. Not just any bats, mind you, but megabats (I swear I didn’t make that up—Google it) with five-foot wingspans. Here they are, hanging out, waiting for dusk.

One of the wonders of this place is that there’s no way of avoiding breathtaking experiences. On my ten-minute walk to lunch today, I happened to peer into the gateway of a temple along the way. I’ll definitely have to get back there to explore it. And heading back to the office, I took the local equivalent of a cab. Yes, there are tuk-tuks here for the tourists, but real Cambodians (like me—not!) just hop on the back of a guy’s motorcycle and hold on. Everybody does it, and the ladies ride sidesaddle!

Just to prove I’m really working, here’s a fence I designed today. More tomorrow…